Looked at stock returns by president from 1926 to 2019. The pattern is clear: markets don't care who sits in the Oval Office as much as we think they do.
Every administration saw positive average returns. Democrats slightly higher at 10.8%, Republicans at 5.1%. But here's what matters more: the range is massive under both parties. You had FDR at 15.3% and Hoover at -14.8%. You had Coolidge at 25.2% and Nixon at -1.4%.
The lesson isn't partisan. It's that markets are shaped by business cycles, innovation, credit conditions, and global forces far bigger than any single leader. Presidents get too much credit in bull markets and too much blame in bear markets.
Time in the market beats timing around elections. Always has.
Every administration saw positive average returns. Democrats slightly higher at 10.8%, Republicans at 5.1%. But here's what matters more: the range is massive under both parties. You had FDR at 15.3% and Hoover at -14.8%. You had Coolidge at 25.2% and Nixon at -1.4%.
The lesson isn't partisan. It's that markets are shaped by business cycles, innovation, credit conditions, and global forces far bigger than any single leader. Presidents get too much credit in bull markets and too much blame in bear markets.
Time in the market beats timing around elections. Always has.